Minnesota Timberwolves Tickets

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES FRANCHISE FACTS:
Founded: 1989
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Stadium: Target Center
Conference: Western Conference
Division: Northwest Division
Rivals: N/A
Mascot: Crunch
Dancers: Timberwolves Dance Team
Notable Players: Malik Sealy
Minnesota Timberwolves Championship Titles: 0
Minnesota Timberwolves Conference Titles: 0

See Also:
Minnesota Timberwolves Playoff tickets
Minnesota Timberwolves Season Preview History

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES EXPERIENCE:
The Minnesota Timberwolves are a relative newcomer to the NBA that joined the league as an expansion team in 1989 with the Orlando Magic. Much like many teams that are starting from scratch, it took a few years of struggles on the court and winning over new fans in the Minneapolis area before they gained prominence. The T-Wolves initially played their games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, the home of the Minnesota Vikings, until they moved into their permanent home, the Target Center.

The Timberwolves followed the path of many expansion teams by starting off slow in their first few years. The team was led by shooting guard Tony Campbell during their inaugural season, who scored an average of 23.2 points on the court per game. The successive years saw the Timberwolves pick up a number of first round selections, such as Christian Laettner and Isaiah Rider.

The tide turned for the T-Wolves in 1995 when the team selected high school standout Kevin Garnett and hired coach Flip Saunders. They also traded the underwhelming Laettner to the Atlanta Hawks for Andrew Lang and Spud Webb, and traded Donyell Marshall for the Golden State Warriors' Tom Gugliotta. The following year, the Timberwolves swapped the Milwaukee Bucks' Ray Allen for point guard Stephon Marbury. Finally, the Timberwolves had a foundation to work with, and it paid off with Garnett and Gugliotta being named All-Stars during the 1996 season. The team was an exciting addition to the Western Conference that combined Garnett's go-to presence in the paint with the speed and agility of Marbury's ball handling skills.

As the years unfolded, the Timberwolves had a series of personnel changes, but exploded onto the scene during the 2003-04 season. The team won its division title that year and made quick work of the Denver Nuggets and Sacramento Kings in the first two rounds of the playoffs. Unfortunately, the T-Wolves lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals and haven't been back since. With the trade of Kevin Garnett in 2007, the team entered rebuilding mode and began working to get back in the right direction. A bevy of young talent and a new management direction helped the T-Wolves improve steadily as they worked to break their playoff drought and return to prominence in the Western Conference.